Rioja Tasting

[manton]

This was rather insane and trust me I don't do things like this all that often. I got a last minute invite and could not say no, even though I know next to jack about Rioja. The purpose of the tasting was an auction preview and all the wines except a few came from the seller's cellar.

The Rioja producers were by and large unknown to me except two: Marquez de Riscal might be the most famous producer, most would know the bottle if you saw it, white label with the corners clipped, gold lettering (sort of like Pichon Lalande) and that weird “netting” of gold thread around the bottle. Tondonia also has a lable that I am sure everyone would recognize.

Also, as an aside, it just so happened that I drank a 1968 Valoria in August. Saw it in a store I trust, it was recommended, so I nabbed it. The bottle was pristine and so was the cork. I asked some guys at this tasting, who really know their Riojas, about that. They are familiar with Valoria. Their view, speculative but informed, was that the wine was probably kept in cask for many years, much longer than is ever done in France. This is incidentally why Rioja so rarely has sediment. We got virtually none all night, even from the really ancient bottles. The sediment tends to fall out from all that time in the cask.

But there is another reason. So apparently it is common in Rioja to age bottles in the cellars of the wineries for a long time, decades, and then re-release at much later date. When they do this, the fills get low and so they “re-bottle” the wine. Hence whatever sediment is left tends to stay in the original bottle and not get poured into the new bottle. So, new bottle, new cork, new label, new everything, which explains why the bottle Matt and I had was so pristine.

But there is a catch. Apparently is not uncommon for them to “top off” the new bottles to bring the fill levels up. Now, this would be totally unremarkable IF the wine being “topped up” was the same vintage. But apparently in Rioja, that is not always the case. Two of the guys there said that they had tried that Valoria ’68 that and while they found it good, they were convinced that it had been “topped up” with wine from a younger vintage. It certainly was fresh. That practice would get you killed in France, course.

Anyway, on to the flights:

#1
Cava: Sabate I Coca Reserva Familiar 2004 (fermented in wood, aged sur lie)
Lopez de Heredia Gran Reserva Blanco 1991
Meursault Les Luchets Roulot 2007
Meursault Meix Chavaix Roulot 2009

The white Rioja was slightly oxidized but I was assured that’s what supposed to happen to that wine at this age. It had lots of the characteristics I look for in old white, a sort of nuttiness and a woodiness that is not from oak but from age, if that makes sense.

The two Roulots were brought by someone just because and they were, as ever, just mouth-fillingly spectacular. I preferred the 2007 but they were both great. They made me sad however in that clearly these wines have the potential to age superbly and turn into that golden honey juice I love so well but the premox risk is not worth it so they never will get the chance.

The 2004 Cava had more of that old champs funk and it was clearly head and shoulders better than the 2005 we were served at the pre reception. One guy identified a sweetness he called “quince paste” which sounded right on.

Then we moved on to the reds. Let me say something about the Riojas’ “family resemblance.” As I drank them I could begin to see what made alike. I noticed four characteristics: 1) smoke, especially on the nose; 2) licorice/fennel/anise; 3) “heribiscousness” and 4) strawberries. The last had to be pointed out to me but once I looked for it, it was there. The others were immediately evident.

#2
Lopez de Heredia Gran Reserva Tondonia 1968
Cune Imperial Gran Reserva 1968
Cune Imperial 1959 – two bottles
Volnay Santenots Hospices de Beaune Cuvee Gauvain Joseph Drouhin 1959

The first ’68 red had a great nose but was a little weak on the palate. The second ’68 was really tremendous all the way around. That was the wine that started to get everyone yammering. Fresh, deep, rich, very young still. Amazing that these were the youngest reds we had all night.

Funny how the two ‘59s, same wines, different bottles, drank so differently. Alas, I don’t remember those so well but I wasn’t blown away by either of them. What I remember most distinctly was "toasted bread" on the nose, in a nice way.

The next wine however I remember vividly: Drouhin Hospice de Beaune 1959. I don’t know what to say about this wine. It was completely outside my frame of reference. I just have never had a Burgundy that old. I think the oldest I had drunk before that were 83, a Clos des Mouche and Chambertin, both Drouhin. In the 1990s I had a lot of ‘85s but they were not even 15 y/o at that point. So this was just completely wild.

It was super pale, almost lavender, and quite transparent, almost weightless. No tannin, no harshness, light acid, just fruit but soft fruit and incredibly, given its lightness, a super long finish. Completely unlike aged Bord or Cab and completely unlike young Burg. It was hard to believe this was the same grape and region as the 2004 Beaune I had a couple of weeks before.

#3
Rioja Gran Reserva Bodegas Berberana 1950
Marques de Riscal Reserva 1953
Billbainas Reserva Especiale 1955
Marques de Riscal Reserva 1959

The 1955 was corked, too bad. It was a good wine underneath, alive and not spoiled but corked. The ’53 for me was the star and the wine of the night. Rich, complete, delivered on the nose and the tongue, perfectly mature. Though two of the guys said that wine would get better it was hard to see how. And one guy said he didn’t like the ’53, too much bret. Well, I didn’t detect any at all.

The ’50 had a great nose but seemed light on the palate but it opened in the glass and seemed to get better. The ’59 was great and balanced, it just wasn’t as good as the others so it suffered by comparison.

#4
Marques de Riscal Reserva 1922
Marques de Riscal Reserva 1923
Lopez de Heredia Gran Reserva Bosconia 1976

These were the oldest wines I have ever had. They were served with cheese which was a good choice. They were quite “funky” but not bad. Though I am not sure I would have loved them with the other dishes, they were great with the cheese.

Consensus in the room was that the 23 had been topped up with a younger vintage but the 22 was pure. I could certainly see the reason why people thought that. The 22 was lighter, brickier, and funkier. The 23 just had a slightly unctuous freshness that was inconsistent with being as old as my dead grandparents.

Sadly, I do not remember the 1976 at all.

[AlexR]

Manton,

Thanks for your fascinating post.

I visited Lopez de Heredia in June and that was quite an experience (cobwebs and all). I came away with a bottle of Gran Reserva Tondonia, but about 30 years younger.
I plan to sit on it for some time to come.

All the best,
Alex R.